6.30.04
Woohoo, I got my skates; they're so pretty. Of course after 5 minutes I fall flat on my butt. Ouch. =(

6.29.04
It's awesome when best friends know you so well. I've always had a penchant for cute fairy tales. Anyway, my friend recommended this book to me: Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate Dicamillo. Yes, I know it's a book for kids ages 9-12 but I don't care! And it won a Newberry Medal Award, too.

6.28.04
I can't resist sales; why are there so many in June? They will lead me to my downfall.

6.27.04
I want to visit the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa this year. Who wants to come? The image below is made up of thousands of Snoopy comic strips.

6.26.04
I took Crissy and Windy urban hiking around San Francisco. We visited the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market and bought some herbal bread at the Acme Bread Company. It was yummy; I love chewey bread with good textures. The Farmer's Market is seriously a gourmet cook's heaven, so many different kinds of olive oils, special sauces, cheeses, fresh organic produce and fruit. The market is opened four days a week.

Tuesday: 10 am – 2 pm
Thursday: 10 am - 2 PM
Saturday: 8 am - 2 PM
Sunday: 10 am - 2 PM

We found some new hearts along the Embarcadero and Market Street. We did a little shopping at Urban Outfitters before heading for some dim sum at New Asia in Chinatown. Ordering dim sum is a bit of a challenge when you don't speak any Cantonese so me and my sisters resorted to a lot of pointing. I was happy when we found custard filled pineapple buns, so yummy.

New Asia
772 Pacific Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94133
415-391-6666

Anyway, Crissy couldn't hang with us cuz she twisted her ankle so Windy and I hit all the tourist traps. We hiked to Coit Tower, Lombard Street, where it's all crooked, Fisherman's Wharf, Fort Mason, and the Palace of Fine Arts. It was funny; we realized we missed our stop for the Palace of Fine Arts when the bus sped by it. We ended up taking the reverse bus from the vista point near the Golden Gate bridge. Near the beach before Fort Mason, all these kids were making tall piles of rocks that were balanced precariously. We wanted to drop by the Civic Center to find more hearts but it was too crowded from all the SF Pride festivities. Anyway, it was fun showing Windy all these places despite the fact that they're tourist traps. Bleh, I was good about putting on sunblock but forgot my neck so it's all sunburned now. Ouch.

OK next SF trip, is to visit the Fillmore Jazz festival and go window shopping in all the fun areas in SF like Haight, Fillmore, Union, and Chestnut.

6.25.04
Today is Take your Dog to Work Day. Sigh, I don't care how small dogs are, I'm still scared of them. I don't like it when they're excited and jump around all over you, especially when you're wearing a skirt. Raph brought his two dogs, Cookie and Boomer. Cookie was darling though; she's a three month year old schnauzer with claws. Cookie was well behaved most of the time, napping on her towel while Raph coded. Boomer, on the other hand, is a very temperamental dachshund.

6.24.04
For those of you interested in fast fashion, H&M, or Hennes & Mauritz is planning on opening a store in Union Square on 150 Powell St. during the later half of 2005. I think it's very exciting because H&M can only be found in Europe or on the East Coast.

6.23.04
There's a new exhibit at the Asian Art Museum called Geisha: Beyond the Painted Smile and here's an interesting Chronicle article about geishas. Also, Steven Spielberg is now filming a movie version of Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha.

6.22.04
I like the drawings from the comic All Over Coffee by Paul Madonna. The drawings usually portray interesting sites around San Francisco. His work is being show at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco.

6.21.04
Happy 25th Birthday Eddie! =)

6.20.04
Happy Father's Day! My family had a lunch with my grandparents. Afterwards, my parents dragged us to look at model homes in Union City. Me and my sisters were impressed by the cool interior decorating. It's sad, I think I have yuppie tastes; I love anything Europe or vintage related.

Anyway, I had a second lunch with Jason at Sushi House in Alameda. I think these are some of my favorite rolls:

Caterpillar Roll
Island Roll
Lion King Roll
Power Roll

The rolls are huge and I'm always full after 1.5 rolls. I have trouble eating the rolls elegantly cuz the slices are too big to put in my mouth at once. Afterwards, we drove back along the water and saw lots of people parasailing. I need to find a day when the weather isn't so hazy so I can get a good shot of the San Francisco skyline. We got some ice cream from Safeway; I'm totally gonna buy sugar cones from now on, so yum.

We watched Lost in Translation and I didn't mind that the movie was slower paced. Jason started cracking up when Charlotte said this: "I tried taking pictures, but they were so mediocre. I guess every girl goes through a photography phase. You know, horses . . . taking pictures of your feet." Bleh, I'm not going through a phase, heehee! Watching the movie definitely makes me want to go visit Tokyo again; the last time I went was back in 5th grade. Anyway, I think it's cool that Jason is learning to produce and compose music and interning at High Spies. Check out their music.

6.19.04
I organized a lunch with some BAP girls at Rick and Ann's. Shawna and Nancy were actually on time; that's a first, heehee! Cami and Emily were late though, tsk tsk. Anyway, it was good seeing Cami before she goes off to Carnegie Mellon for graduate school. Apparently, there are very few Asians there. =/ Anyway, I ordered the Midwest which is two potato-cheese pancakes with two eggs any style, grilled tomatoes, and house-smoked Niman Ranch pork chop. The pork chop was definitely the best, yummy. I was starving from running in the morning so I cleaned my plate, heehee, piggy Lena. Rick and Ann's does catering and a lot of people were picking up platters. All of their desserts looked delicious.

I love walking around Claremont; all the houses remind me of cottages from fairy tales with overflowing flower gardens ala Alice in Wonderland. I went window shopping around the Rockridge area; there were so many stores that reminded me of Anthropologie, the whole vintagey, chic appeal, stuff that you supposedly find at Parisian flea markets. Unfortunately, I can't afford anything.

Thanks Emily, I now have gmail, too. Woot!

6.18.04
I got my eyebrows threaded, no more bushy eyebrows. Heehee, they look so pretty now. I wonder how long it'll last. Threading was painful but bearable.

6.17.04
I watched Charade starring Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant. It's such a funny, romantic thriller with a cute, surprise ending. I love the sarcastic dialogue between Hepburn and Grant, so amusing. I relate to how Hepburn's character kept on nibbling on food when she started getting nervous or stressed out. I'm always craving for junk food during finals or when I'm about to have a nervous breakdown. =p

6.16.04
A good friend told me not to worry about searching for my life soulmate, rather search for the right guy for me at this moment in time.

6.15.04
Sometimes I think I say too much for my own good. However, I'm gonna keep to my word on how everything is a learning experience no matter how unpleasant. But it is refreshing to be able to talk to someone so candidly.

6.14.04
I really want to go to Italy during Spring 2005. I feel like I deserve this trip after taking 4 classes a quarter for 6 quarters straight. I gave up so much play time that I need to make up for it. I'm thinking of doing a Contiki tour because it's less stressful than planning. The trip I'm interested in is called Simply Italy and it's for 13 days. Please let me know if you're interested.

These are the dates I'm interested in:
Mar 21 - Apr 2
Mar 28 - Apr 9
Apr 4 - Apr 16
Apr 11 - Apr 23
Apr 18 - Apr 30
Apr 25 - May 7

6.13.04
Sandy and I went shopping at Nordstrom Rack. She was looking for some business casual shoes and I was just browsing. I ended up buying a pretty pinstripe dress with pink lining. We went grocery shopping and I made some ravioli for lunch; it beats paying overpriced meals at restaurants. Sigh, I've been spending way too much money lately. Anyway, we watched a funny Marilyn Monroe movie called Let's Make Love. Heehee, I loved all the famous cameos.

6.12.04
I walked around San Francisco, taking picture of hearts and pretty buildings. Looking for the hearts is so much fun; it's like a scavenger hunt. There's hearts around Civic Center, Union Square, and the Ferry Building. I wanna visit the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market sometime this summer. A lot of the produce looked yummy. There's a great gelato place inside called Ciao Bella Gelato. One stand was selling huge bouquets of colorful hydrangeas, so pretty. Around Union Square, tons of stores were having clearance sales so I stopped by Urban Outfitters and bought a cute shirt for my sister Jennifer. It's a pig holding flowers and saying, "Don't eat me, I love you."

Sandy had a birthday brunch at Hukilau in San Francisco; they serve yummy Hawaiian food. Haha, I like how the waiter "accidentally" made apple martinis for us girls. I ordered the Hukilau chicken which was kinda on the dry side but the ahi poke was such a yummy appetizer. Anyway, it was fun seeing everyone and catching up. People who went were Drew, Katie, Lise, Nancy, Shawna, and some of Sandy's friends. Shawna's funny; she warned me to not judge her based on the people she associates with, crazy South Bay'ers.

Hukilau
5 Masonic Ave
San Francisco, CA 94118
415-921-6242

Brian had a bbq at his new place in El Cerrito. Funny how we have a lot of mutual friends. Chicken apple = yummy; I'm always making trips to Top Dog when I'm starving at work during late afternoons. Anyway, it was cool chatting with Jennifer K. and Emily. Due to silly circumstances, I didn't go to Whisper with everyone else afterwards.

6.11.04
I love sunning my bath towels. It gives them this fresh sun baked smell that I can't really describe but that laundry detergents companies probably have tried to mimic.

6.10.04
I had lunch with Stephanie at Filippos. I ordered the Spinach Lasagna and Stephanie had the Linguine Primavera. It's funny how with some people even though you don't see them for months, chatting with them is so easy and comfortable. I'm happy that Stephanie moved back to the Bay Area. I always get sad when my good friends move away. Jenny, our old law school housemate is now married! So weird when people you know are married.

Filippos
2930 College Ave
Berkeley, CA 94705
510-644-3848

6.9.04
People keep asking me what I want to do career wise. I'm not sure yet but I know I can't keep procrastinating and eventually have to figure out what I want to do for the rest of my life. Bleh, graduate school was a good excuse to put things on hold.

6.8.04
Favorite Songs of the Moment:

The Killers - Mr. Brightside
Muse - Time Is Running Out
Snow Patrol - Run
Sugarcult - Memory

6.7.04
Sometimes I wish I could fast forward time, especially when I have to write a long paper or do something highly unpleasant like a ten hour plan ride. Other times I wish I could hit rewind and relive a moment and over and over again. Mmm, or maybe it's all in our mind that a moment was so special and hitting replay again would diminish the specialness of the moment.

6.6.04
The bad thing about long hair is that you can't leave it down without it getting caught on something like the straps of your bag. The good thing about long hair is you can wear skimpier tops and let your hair down to keep yourself decent or modest.

6.5.04
Lately, I've felt like I'm not growing. I have a friend who says that you learn so much about life when you're vulnerable and with someone. So it makes me wonder, am I stuck because it's the first time in a long while that I haven't been in a relationship? In relationships, you're exposed to new experiences and emotions. On the other hand, I have another friend who says I'm too complacent in relationships and let guys walk all over me. And hearing this makes me very wary and more picky about who I want to date. Sigh, but it's not like I have much time to fall in love right now, juggling school and work. Haha, I talk about it like I can schedule love in. I wish! Sometime after March 2005 would be nice. If you know any cuties, send them my way.

6.4.04
You know you're not compatible with someone you met recently, if s/he brings out the worst in you and you find yourself making bitchy, catty remarks. The best thing to do is to watch what you say and limit your interactions with that person.

6.3.04
Ooh, I want this book: Sex and the City: Kiss and Tell by Amy Sohn, Sarah Wildman, Sarah Jessica Parker.

6.2.04
Small talk gets tiring and dull. I wish there was a way to skip all that, find some common ground, and discuss things that I get giddy about.

6.1.04
Well I finally saw the Art Deco exhibit at the Legion of Honor that I've been waiting to go all year long. I liked some of the jewelry and cigarette cases on display. They had all sorts of things in the exhibition from a vintage car, formal evening wear, travel posters, to furniture. It was interesting seeing all the outside influences (Asian, Egyptian, and Mayan) on Art Deco.

I also went to SFMOMA where they had a special exhibition called Pop! From San Francisco Collections that featured art works by artists like Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg, and Roy Lichtenstein. I like Lichtenstein's old school comic style.